Halloween Preview

We bought this spider costume for Nemo at Target yesterday. We tried it on today and Nemo didn't think much of it. He danced around for awhile chasing the many legs until he finally caught one. This costume was so worth the money.

Do You Like See-Food?

Tommy really enjoyed his snack today of raspberries, blueberries, and a waffle. He gobbled up the raspberries faster than I've ever seen him eat anything. I think they must be his favorite food. There's a lot of pictures because I loved them all and couldn't narrow them down!

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Then and Now

Here is Tommy at 2 weeks, and then at 9 months. Quite a difference!

9 Month Checkup

Tommy had his 9 month checkup this afternoon and he is a very healthy little boy! He weighs 24 lbs (91%ile) and is 30.5 inches long (97%ile). He had to get a big needle and have blood drawn for lead test, but he didn't even cry. Just watched with mild interest as the nice lab tech took some blood. Lucky kid didn't even have to get his immunization shots today.

At home, he's been babbling a lot lately, saying mama, dada, yaya, and baba. He pulls up on furniture and cruises and LOVES to push around his little 'mail cart' which Mark and I affectionately call "Baby Hugo". (Hugo is a company that makes walkers for adults). He loves Nemo as much as ever and has figured out how to play tug-of-war with him by waving something in front of Nemo's face until he tries to get the object. He also plays peek-a-boo if you give him a big cloth and say, "Tommy, want to play peek-a-boo?" He'll put the cloth over his face and pull it down with a big grin. So as you can see, he's a very happy and healthy little guy.

New Tenant

Here's the little guy who had taken up residence in our spare bedroom. Cute, isn't he? I moved him and his belongings into the yard, since I thought he'd be more comfortable there. We were sad to see him go.

Fun with Spaghetti

Tommy had his first experience with spaghetti today and he loved playing with it. He tried to eat some, but it didn't work very well. We haven't posted in awhile because we've been so busy unpacking. Things are calming down a bit, so hopefully we'll have more updates in the future.

Moved In!

We're finally moved in our new house and are mostly unpacked. It's really starting to feel like home now that we've been in the house for a week.

Squatting at Mom & Dad's House

We've been living with Mark's parents for a week now, with one more week to go until our house closes escrow. This is the house Mark grew up in and it's been fun for Tommy's grandparents and great-grandmother to see him do the things Mark did as a baby in the same places he did them. We are so glad we decided to move to this town. Tommy will likely go to the same schools his father did, if we decide to put the kids in public school.

We've realized how much we missed living in a rural area, seeing cows and horses everywhere, and actually walking on dirt on the side of the road. There is also an amazing local orchard within walking distance, not to mention other fresh fruit and vegetable stands everywhere. Last night we took a walk down the street and saw...stars! We could never see stars in the city because there were always too many lights, trees, and buildings. We don't miss the city traffic, constant stream of strip malls, or the cramped feeling. I think we're really going to enjoy living here.

- Autumn

Mark (on the right) and his brother taking a bath

Tommy taking a bath in the same tub, 25 years later.

Packing Up

We've made good progress with packing the house up. Nemo didn't like being boxed up, but Tommy sure liked it!

Floorplans

For those of you who have not seen the layout of the house, I measured and sketched out the floorplan. This is so Autumn and I can better plan furniture placement, since the average room is smaller then our current place. Although there are a lot more rooms! Note that I already started sketching some furniture layouts in the master bedroom and family room.

You WHAT?!

It is amazing how much your life can change in 48 hours.

Sunday, 5:00 AM: Autumn finds out she is pregnant with our second child.

Sunday, 11:00 AM: We visit my parents along with Matt and Cameron. Mom tells us about a house for sale on the end of the street.

Sunday, 1:00 PM: The selling agent agrees to show up and show us the house. We love it. We make an appointment with our agent, Russ Warrick, to talk about it on Monday.

Monday, 1:00 PM: For 3 hours Autumn, Russ, and I discuss all the details with purchasing the house, selling our condo, and getting financing. We talk with Mom and Dad a few hours as well.

Monday, 8:30 PM: We meet Russ at his office, loan pre-qualification letter and deposit check in hand. We go over the offer he wrote, sign and submit it.

Monday, 9:30 PM: We head home, exhausted and dazed from the day's events. Meanwhile, the selling agent calls the seller into the office. They look over and discuss our offer.

Monday, 11:00 PM: Russ calls us to say that they accepted the offer. We call our family to let them know. Close of escrow is June 29th, roughly 3 weeks away.

We just bought a house, when we were not seriously looking 2 days ago. And we found out we are having a baby in that same time period.

The house is amazing! Everything we were looking for. Big and beautiful back yard, hardwood floors throughout, 22 second drive from Mom, Dad and Grandma, out of the city, inexpensive for the area, and much more. It is perfect! Take a look at the new photo album on the sidebar. Note that that is not our furniture inside.

- Mark

A peanut's Life, Issue 12

Issue 12 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

Yes... we are pregnant!

Tommy Plays Soccer

At the Park

We've been taking Tommy to the park a lot these days, now that the weather has been really nice and he's more aware of the world around him. He's well acquainted with grass, but he still isn't too sure what to make of it. He usually just sits and tries to keep as little skin from touching it as possible. If he does want to get somewhere by crawling, he'll try to crawl with one hand, which has pretty funny results. He met the sandbox today, and after about 5 mins of staring at it, he decided to dig in and pick up handfuls of sand and let it fall through his fingers. I was pretty amazed he didn't try to stuff it in his mouth. Progress! He also enjoyed the baby swing, and especially loved watching his shadow on the ground below him. We brought some bread to feed the birds and they walked right up to us to eat it. Tommy was fascinated by all the pigeons, ducks, and geese everywhere around him.

- Autumn

Tommy is Crawling!

Today Tommy started crawling. He is just 2 days shy of being 7 months old.

He has been playing with the idea of crawling for a few weeks now. He would take a step with his hand, then backup and sit down. Then he would go back to all fours and take another step. We didn't want to announce he was crawling until he really was.

Well, something clicked today. We think Tommy being naked, but for his diaper, helped. Regardless, out of the blue this morning, he started doing a perfect crawl for three feet at a time. And then again. And again.

Autumn and I were over-joyed. We had already baby-proofed the house, but we did another sweep, just to make sure. We need to start changing our lifestyles a bit, starting today. Doors and closets need to stay closed and latched. We need to be aware of everything that is on the floor at any given time.

Cheers, Tommy!

-Mark

A Peanut's Life, Issue 11

Issue 11 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

Fun with Family

We visited Matt and Cameron twice this past week and had so much fun! It was great to see the interaction between cousins, especially Eliana loving on Tommy and Tommy trying to eat Kirsten's toes. We spent pretty much all day outside in the yard and had a relaxing barbecue both days. We even made s'mores last night! It will be wonderful to see both our families grow up together.

- Autumn

Tommy and My Bambi

When I was a little girl, I had a stuffed Bambi that I took everywhere. And I do mean everywhere. I smuggled him into kindergarten with me and he went with me to McDonald's while I ate my Chicken McNuggets. He slept with me, ate breakfast with me, and drew in coloring books with me. He used to look a lot better, but having been through the washing machine and a childhood has left him a bit battle-scared. Now that Bambi has been entrusted to Tommy's care, I hope he will have as much fun with Tommy as he did with me.

- Autumn

Wet Paint!

This weekend was Mother's Day, but Autumn and I decided to postpone it until next weekend. See, this weekend my parents were out of town for the first time in years. It was a golden opportunity to sneak into their house and do all the odd jobs that needed to get done without them knowing, including painting their bathroom. In truth, Autumn and I spent time with grandma while Tommy did most of the painting. Oh, and Nemo ate plants in the backyard. 9 AM to 10 PM on both Sat and Sun, but it was worth it. Good job Tommy!

Dad was in New Mexico giving his Love Relationships talk at  the "Steeling the Mind" conference by Compass. From what I hear, it is spectacular! Soon, they will have DVDs of the talk available.

The talk was a big success and Mom and Dad are are home safe, which Autumn and I are very thankful for!

Mark

A Peanut's Life, Issue 10

Issue 10 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

This will be the last issue in our 1-per-day run. There will be future issues, but they will be more random and spaced out. Keep an eye out!

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A Peanut's Life, Issue 9

Issue 9 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

A Peanut's Life, Issue 8

Issue 8 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

A Peanut's Life, Issue 7

Issue 7 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

A Peanut's Life, Issue 6

Issue 6 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

A Peanut's Life, Issue 5

Issue 5 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

A Peanut's Life, Issue 4

Issue 4 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

A Peanut's Life, Issue 3

Issue 3 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image below to see the full-size version.

A Peanut's Life, Issue 2

"A Peanut's Life" continunes! This is issue 2 of "A Peanut's Life". Click on the image to see the full-size version.

A Peanut's Life!

Introducing, a new mini-series, "A Peanut's Life"!

For a limited time, there will be daily installments of this exciting publication! Tell your friends!

Click on the image to see a larger version.

6 Month Checkup

Tommy had his 6 month checkup today, which was fortunate since he is sick at the moment.  The most amazing thing we found out was that he is in the top 75% for weight (19 lbs.) and the top 97% for height (29 inches). The doctor said he was one of the tallest he had seen for a baby his age. He is his father's son. :)

Now that Tommy has been consistently eating solids, I have started making his food.  I thought it would be a lot harder than it is, and it's actually quite fun.  I have a book, Blender Baby Food, that gives really simple recipes and great tips on baby/toddler nutrition, meal plans, and preparation.  Here's what Tommy has tasted so far:

• bananas


• peas


• squash


• carrots


• green beans


• sweet potato


• pear

Over the next few weeks we'll try blueberries, spinach, and avocado.  Yum!

- Mark & Autumn

Visualize Whirled Peas

The twins have arrived!

Last Thursday Autumn and I received our new iMacs to replace our 3-year-old PCs. We made the switch over to Macs. Autumn used a Mac for a year at her work, and I have been on a Mac laptop for a few months. Our experiences made both of us eager for this move.  24" screens and a screaming fast system. And we are running Windows XP on our systems too, for the few times we need to use an app from it. What more could one want?

Don't worry... we are not going to become one of those obnoxious people that wear buttons that say "Ask me why I love my Mac?"

In other news, Tommy has a cold. He is very snarfly and fussy, coughing, sneezing and sniffling often. It is very sad.

To cheer him up, we officially made the Mac laptop Tommy's computer. Now he can join us in playing computer games.

Oh, and don't forget to ask me why I love my Mac. :)

Mark

So Mobile!

Tommy has been very mobile the past few days.  Yesterday I found that he had sat up on his own in his crib when I checked on him after a nap.  He seemed very proud of himself and he's been practicing sitting up all day today. 

He's also been practicing crawling.  He's still far from true crawling, but he's working on it!

Friends

It *looks* like Nemo is about to have a baby hand snack, but he was

really just yawning.

Deep conversation interrupted by Mommy's camera.